A Frozen Heart
by Tamryll
Summary: Instead of turning to solid ice, Anna's heart freezes completely, giving anger and hatred free reign in her heart and soul. It is up to Elsa, Kristoff and a fiery stranger to save her.
1. Chapter 1

A.N. Oh my! It is a new story! How delightful! Another story to bring me emotional heart break!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this fanfic! Please let me know what you think so far!

Chapter 1: A Frozen Heart

I never saw myself as good. I always saw myself as something that had to be controlled in order to avoid hurting others. Anna was always the good sister. The happy, sweet girl that hugged everyone while I hid in my room. Staying in my room was my own choice, of course, as it was best for everybody, but that didn't mean I didn't yearn for human contact. My sister's contact, especially.

But she's dead. She is no more. The whole world around me is freezing in place and cold, cold silence. I'm lying on the ice, curled up with my arms curled around myself. Agonizing pain wrecks through my body as I realise I am no longer a sister. I am simply an orphan. No parents, no sister, no one. I am alone. Anna is gone forever. And it is all my fault.

I hear faint footsteps somewhere behind me, but I pay no attention to it. Anna is gone. It's all I can think about. As the ice groans pretty close to me I finally look up. Hans is about two feet away, his arm raised with his sword in hand, about to strike me to end my misery forever. I close my eyes and await the blow longingly, ready to be freed from this agony.

Only the blow never lands, as both Hans' and my own focus are broken by a shrill shriek of pain that is all too familiar. I whip myself around and see Anna lay on the ice about 20 feet away, shivering and shaking. My heart makes a leap from happiness at seeing her alive but jumps to extreme worry as she releases another shriek of pain. Next to me, Hans gazes in confusion at Anna, his sword hanging limply in his hand as he scratches his head.

I take my chance and reach my hand out to him, letting tendrils of ice wrap themselves around his legs and then solidifying, locking him to the ice. He drops his sword and it slides a good few feet away from him. I turn around and slip and slide my way to Anna's side, my fingers yearning to reach her. When my fingers come in contact with her hands, I pull them back immediately. They are cold as ice and feel both fragile and hard.

A blonde, tall guy with broad shoulders comes sliding to Anna's side from the opposite way. He immediately whispers her name and grasps her hands in his. He seems thrown off for just a moment when he feels her icy hands, but he tries to warm them up nevertheless.

"Who are you?" I growl as I wrap my arms protectively around Anna's small frame, noting somewhere in the back of my mind that her breathing is so, so shallow.

"I'm Kristoff! I.. I met you at your palace.. Please, you have to let me kiss her!" The blonde guy says and stumbles over his words, still gripping Anna's hands tightly in his own.

"Kiss her? Are you crazy?! We have to get her warm! You can beg for my blessing later!" I retaliate, tightening my grip around Anna's shoulders.

Kristoff looks at me for a moment and utter confusion makes its way into his eyes. He then shakes his head and the confusion is replaced by determination. "Your blessing? There is no time! Please! True love's kiss will thaw a frozen heart! It's the only way to save her!"

"True love's kiss?" I repeat softly to myself, then push away the urge to freeze this Kristoff to the ice as well and leave both him and Hans behind. Instead, I nod reluctantly at Kristoff and allow him to gently cup Anna's face with his hands. I watch reluctantly as this stranger leans in to kiss the now seemingly lifeless body of my younger sister.

As his lips are about to brush against hers, something extremely peculiar happens. Anna whips open her eyes and hits Kristoff square in his face with a flat hand. The slapping noise echoes ever so slightly and Kristoff's face is tilted to his right. This comical, yet peculiar moment gives me the urge to laugh out loud, but my worry overtakes that urge immediately.

My hands find Anna's face, her hair, her shoulders, her hands. She still feels cold, but not as icily as she did before. Her eyes stand fierce and bright, but her hair is now as white as mine. Her skin seems slightly paler than it was before, but she seems okay otherwise.

"Anna!" I gasp loudly as I force my arms around her and hug her tight. I hold on to her for dear life as all of my worry and grief suddenly pours out. Sobs wreak through my body as well as slightly hysterical shudders of laughter.

Anna, however, breaks away from my arms with an annoyed grunt and rises from the ice. Both Kristoff and I gaze up at her in confusion. She focuses her blue eyes on me and stares me down with an icy glare.

"Don't touch me," she hisses at me and gently beats the snowflakes from her purple cape. I can't believe my eyes. She's not smiling. Anna always smiles. I just sit there on the ice, my hands raised slightly in longing for her, my eyes wide and mouth slightly open. Kristoff recovers first from his surprise. He rises besides Anna and gently tries to touch her shoulder.

"Anna, are you alright?" He says to her.

"Of course I am alright," she replies, and I winch at the icy glint in her voice. She bats Kristoff's hand away. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Kristoff hesitantly glances at me, then back at Anna. "Your heart.. Elsa froze your heart.. and the only way to save you was.. an act of true love."

Anna grins and places her hand confidently on her hip. "And you thought that your kiss would thaw my frozen heart? Please, don't flatter yourself."

Hurt flashes across Kristoff's face, but he doesn't give up. "Please Anna. I know it didn't work yet. We have to get you back to normal."

"Back to normal?" Anna hisses. "Back to boring, happy little Anna that waits until the end of time for a door not to be slammed in her face? Little Anna that still has hope that her sister can be appeased? Poor little Anna that longs for someone to notice her?"

Anna slowly starts to stalk towards Kristoff with eyes colder than the snow on the North Mountain, and he can't help but to back up a few steps.

"No! I will not be that helpless girl anymore! I will no longer be ignored! I will no longer yearn for any sort of love, be it sisterly, or any other kind!" Her voice rises in pitch and volume, and Kristoff is desperate enough to glance to me for help. I don't know what to do. All I can think is that we failed and that it is all my fault.

"But your heart.. you're supposed to be frozen solid.." Kristoff mutters weakly as he tries to slowly advance on Anna again. He staggers back when Anna throws her head back and shrieks out a hysterical laugh. When she is done laughing, she looks down at me with a wide smirk.

"Frozen solid, indeed. My whole heart is frozen solid, indeed. And I am glad it is, for it grants certain.. benefits."

She opens her hand and her grin widens as a miniature ice storm forms above her hand. The miniature storm transforms into a large crystal, then transforms again into a large icicle. She lets it grow and grow until it is about as long as her forearm. She laughs again and crumbles the icicle in small puffs of snow.

Her gaze refocuses on me. "You never learned control, because you were afraid, sister. You have to embrace it, feel the power flowing through your veins and fingers. Only then can you achieve true greatness!"

Kristoff has come up behind Anna and is about to grab her arms and restrain her, but she turns around with a knowing smile. "I'm sorry, Kristoff, but you're just not my type," she laughs. Raising her arms, large cones of cold air seem to emanate from her fingers, freezing his legs to the already existing ice.

I've slightly recovered from my shock and have risen to my feet. With my arms outstretched to her I slowly walk towards her. I hate myself for it, but I start to beg her. "Anna, please. Don't be foolish. You belong in Arendelle with the people. This is not you!"

"Not me? Not me?! How would you know? You spend the last decade locked up in your room! And Arendelle. That place holds only misery, and I do not intend to undo that. Arendelle deserves misery. I think I will find a place far from here, and induce some misery there. I think I like that, yes." Anna straightens herself and stares me straight in the eye. "You have lost, sister. And now it's time for you to face the consequences."

She walks towards me and I cannot help but back off. This is not Anna. This is not my sister. This is a cold version of Anna, a frozen one. And I am afraid.

Anna laughs as I stumble backwards and fall onto the ice of the frozen lake. "Anna.. please.." I whisper. Anna ignores me and raises her hands at me. Icy air streams from her fingers and latches onto my own hands and arms, freezing me to the ice. The cold tendrils continue until both my arms are completely encased and immobile.

I realise she is leaving me for the anger of the citizens of Arendelle. I froze their town, their lands. There will be some of them very eager to end the winter, and thus to end me.

"Goodbye, sister." Anna turns around and starts to walk away from me and Kristoff, both of us frozen to the ice and immobile. A distance away I can see her stop near Hans, who is desperately trying to free himself from the ice that encases his feet.

"Kristoff might not be my type, but you sure are." I hear her say. "Your heart is as frozen as mine. You will make a fine companion." She thaws the ice that held Hans before and grabs his hand. I glance over to Kristoff and disbelief and hurt mixed with anger flash over his face.

Hans seems confused for a moment, but then grins widely. He throws a quick glance at me and Kristoff, but then offers his arm to Anna. They both throw one last smirk at Kristoff and me, then they turn and disappear in the mist that surrounds the lake.

"Anna!" Kristoff yells as she disappears from sight. "ANNA!"

His voice rakes through my body as his hurt mingles with my own. I try to thaw the ice that holds me, but I cannot move my hands or fingers. A certain numbness is taking hold of my fingers and slowly the feeling in them disappears.

"Anna.. no.." I whisper to myself, and I close my eyes in loss and panic.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A Fiery Stranger

Kristoff's yells echo across the frozen lake for a long while after Anna and Hans have disappeared from sight. He turns his attention from yelling into the distance to trying to pry the ice from his feet. At least he is doing something. I am just lying on the icy floor, curled up as best I can with my arms and shoulders frozen to the lake. But why would I do anything? Anna is lost, her heart frozen like the coldest of winters. And I am a failure, a danger. Anything I do results in harming a loved one or a stranger.

A small voice inside my head wonders if perhaps I should at least try. Perhaps not all hope is lost. Perhaps there is some way to still save Anna from the icy fate I have doomed her to.

I smother that little voice. It's no use. Nothing I do will result in anything other than hurt or death.

"Don't give up, Elsa! There must be a way to save her! All ice can thaw!" Kristoff grunts to me as he starts smacking the ice at his feet with his bare hands.

I shake my head faintly. "You failed, Kristoff. I failed. Maybe we should just.. just accept that." I sigh heavily. "I never should have left. I should have stayed and faced judgement."

"I think creating an eternal winter was a bit overreacting, indeed," Kristoff mutters ever so softly.

I would have snapped at him, but it feels like every good emotion, want, desire and dream has been sucked from my body, leaving a pained, empty shell behind.

Kristoff continues to pound loudly on the ice holding his feet, to no avail, and ultimately gives up when his hands are scraped and bloody from the sharp ice.

I am ready to give up. I am ready for the icy storm that swivels around us to swallow me whole. The cold never bothered me, but I now wish it did. It would give me some other pain to focus on than the pain in my heart.

Footsteps come across the ice again, and I whip up my head in sudden hope that it might be Anna. That Anna might have changed her mind and her heart, and that all is not yet lost. But the footsteps are too heavy for Anna's light step. Perhaps it is Hans, come to bring me a swift death.

But I am not so lucky.

The stranger that crouches besides me bears no familiar face. He does bear a face that I would have admitted to be handsome, had I not just seen my sister walk away from me.

"Looks like you could use some help," the stranger speaks in a deep voice, with a hint of amusement hidden beneath.

I focus in on his face, which is so different from any faces I have seen throughout my life. His skin is probably as pale as mine, and his hair is as black as soot. His hair is slightly longer than Kristoff's maybe, and is arranged messily along his forehead. Beneath those messy strands of black hair, two golden-flecked, brown eyes gaze at me patiently.

His leather clothes are simple, but well-made, and all bear shades of black and brown. The only big splash of colour to his figure is the blood red cape that is slung around his shoulders.

"Yes! Yes, we do need some help! Do you have anything to take care of this?" Kristoff yells from the spot where he is rooted to the ice by his feet, and he points dramatically to the ice below.

"Just a moment, I'll be right there," the stranger replies and turns his gaze back to me.

I flinch back as he draws a falchion from his back in a very swift movement, and he immediately pauses.

"I am not here to hurt you. Do not worry, you will be free in a jiffy," he says, as he slowly moves the falchion in the slight space in between the ice and my shoulder.

The stranger carefully wrenches the blade deeper into the ice, and with a powerful shove, he breaks the ice holding my left arm. He does the same for my right arm and shoulder, and soon I can sit up normally.

I slowly rub some feeling back into my hands and arms, while gazing up at the stranger. He's tall. As tall as Kristoff, I imagine. He's not as broad as Kristoff, but lean and well-balanced.

"Thank you for your help." I manage to say, still careful in both my words and actions. It is not often people show me kindness, and ever since both Hans and Anna made such a drastic personality change, I am not sure who to trust.

"My pleasure," he replies with a small smile.

"Enough polite conversation, get me out of here! Ice is my life, but right now I wouldn't mind being free of it!" Kristoff is once again trying to scrape the ice of his legs, while glaring in my direction.

"Of course, my apologies." The stranger is quick to free Kristoff as well and then the two join me again.

I'm still sitting on the ice with my arms huddled around me, staring slightly absent-mindedly into the distance.

Kristoff gently touches my shoulder. "Elsa.. We have to go after her, you know that right?"

I feel the anger start to show on my face as I look up at him. "We don't have to do anything! Anna is lost, Kristoff. Her heart frozen solid. We don't even know where she went. It's no use."

"Don't say that, Elsa! There is always hope!" The three of us look up at the new voice and find Olaf bobbing and bouncing on Sven as he comes galloping towards us.

Kristoff welcomes Sven with a big hug and much laughter, as well as much ear scratching. Olaf pretty much rolls to my side and re-attaches his head to his butt as he looks up at me.

"I'm sure that Anna is still there somewhere, even if her heart is frozen solid," Olaf says with a wide, hopeful smile.

The stranger is looking rather surprised at Olaf, who is happily gazing from one to another. When Olaf spots him in the company, he comes bobbing towards him.

"Hi! I'm Olaf and I love warm hugs!" the snowman says with his twig arms up in the air. "What's your name?"

For a long moment the stranger looks at Olaf as if he's some kind of anomaly, then he extents his hand and shakes one of Olaf's twig arms. "You can call me Aidan. It's.. COOL to meet you, Olaf."

"Likewise, likewise!" Olaf says. He is about to happily continue the conversation when Sven takes a chance at biting at Olaf's nose, causing him to roll away. Sven jumps after him, not about to give up on his quest for Olaf's carrot.

"Aidan, I'm Elsa and this is Kristoff," I say, but to my surprise, Aidan nods knowingly. He sees my surprise and jumps to explain.

He motions across the lake towards the frozen Arendelle. "I came to Arendelle for your coronation, Elsa. I hail originally from the Ashen Mountains, far to the East. It's been a long time, though, since I have been there, as I travel around most of the time. When I got to Arendelle, however, it was a little bit colder than I expected it to be." He says the last words with a big smile and gazes down on me, and I duck my head in shame and embarrassment. He continues, nonetheless. "I understood from the citizens that their queen froze the land and had fled to the mountain, and I decided to see if I could help." He scratches his head a little awkwardly. "Let's say I have some experience with curses and powers and all that jazz."

I raise my eyebrow at him. "I don't even want to know. It doesn't even matter. Anna and Hans are long gone." Aidan looks a little surprised at my remark, but I don't really care. Nothing really matters anymore. Anna's gone for good and it's my own fault.

"But Elsa, you cannot give up. She's your sister," Olaf gazes up at me with a quivering lip of snow.

"I'm sorry Olaf. I don't know what to do." I gesture to the storm around us, still swirling and blowing snow everywhere. "I cannot thaw this winter, I do not know how. I do not know how to thaw a single flake. How can I thaw Anna's heart when I cannot even thaw a single flake? It's over."

I grit my teeth and slowly start to walk away from the group.

"Where are you going?" Kristoff yells over the howling of the wind.

"I'm going to the North Mountain. Where I cannot hurt anyone." I mutter softly, more to myself than to anyone else.

I think I have walked about thirty feet when I feel someone's hand softly grab my arm and stop me. I am about to turn around and growl at whoever dares to stand in my way, but my hands are shaking too much.

Aidan turns me around and holds my cold hands in his. "Elsa. You cannot give up on your sister."

"I am not giving up on her. I am accepting that I can only hurt her more. So it's safer if I just go back to the North Mountain." I am slightly surprised that my voice is so steady, but I decide not to wonder on it for too long and just take it for granted.

"Alright, if you don't believe in your own ability to save her, then you must believe in your ability to save others." I gaze up at Aidan and his golden eyes stand serious and sad at the same time. "Now she has the same powers you do, a lot of people are in danger, Elsa. Her frozen heart brings not only coldness, but cruelty as well. If you cannot save Anna, you have to try and save other innocent lives."

As I gaze up at him, I can feel tears rolling down my cheeks. They feel warm against my cold skin.

"You are a queen, Elsa. Your duty extends beyond the boundaries of Arendelle. Don't give people any more reason to fear you."

"I cannot save people if they hide in their houses when I walk by. That fear will soon turn to malice and I cannot be here when they come for me with pitchforks and torches!" I hiss at him.

Aidan shakes his head. "I suspect Anna searches for a land where they do not know that such powers as yours and hers exist. The greater the terror will be that she can inflict." His golden flecked eyes gaze intensely into mine and I gulp.

"Please Elsa, you cannot condemn those people to terror and misery just because you are afraid. You have to be brave."

I pull my hands free from Aidan's soft grasp and narrow my eyes. "Fine," I growl. "You're right. I do have a duty, and if I cannot save Anna, I can at least try to save as many people from her as I can."

Aidan's confident smirk makes its return to his face. "I knew you weren't as cold as you seemed."

I ignore him and make my way back to Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, who were looking at me and Aidan from a small distance away. I quickly wipe the wet tears from my cheeks.

"Alright, change of plans," I say to the others. "We have to find out where Anna and Hans are headed. We are going to limit their damage and see if we can't put a stop to them. Whatever they have in mind, I think we can assume that it isn't good."

Kristoff doesn't seem too happy about my choice of words and doesn't seem to agree with 'putting a stop to them', but he keeps his mouth shut for now.

"We know they didn't go to Arendelle, but then where?" Kristoff asks.

"It would make sense if they went to the Southern Isles. It's where Hans comes from, isn't it?" Aidan offers.

Kristoff glares at him, but before he can comment, Olaf cuts him off. "The Southern Isles! It's sounds sunny, and warm, and cozy!" Olaf chimes, his little twig arms pushing his cheeks up in a jubilant smile.

Kristoff shakes his head at Olaf. "Olaf, the Southern Isles have a year-long summer. You'll.. You'll melt."

"You mean I won't be able to go?" Olaf asks with yet another quivering snow lip.

"The only ones that will go are Kristoff and me." I interrupt sternly.

"What about Sven?" Kristoff says as he motions to the reindeer, who widens his eyes in imitation of a puppy.

"They don't have reindeer in the Southern Isles, if I am correct. We would be too conspicuous if he came along."

"What about me?" Aidan asks. "You'll need all the help you can get and I can give it to you."

I'm getting annoyed with Aidan's unlimited confidence and shake my head at him. "This is not some sort of holiday. It's just going to be Kristoff and me."

From four sides I am now confronted with protest. Olaf argues that he can create perfect diversions and has always wanted to see the Southern Isles, while Kristoff seems to vouch for Sven, who is also not content with my decision. Aidan's protest is a silent one that plays along his face in the form of irritation, annoyance and defiance.

As they all continue to try to convince me otherwise, a headache seems to gather behind my eyes and I explode in annoyance.

"FINE. Fine. You can all come." My small explosion has caused snow to be blown in everyone's face. Kristoff smiles and takes of his hat to shake it clean of the white stuff, while Sven licks it off his own face. Olaf only giggles. Aidan shakes his head and gazes at me through his messy hair that falls past his eyes, a smirk once again playing on his lips.

"Don't be too happy just yet!" I warn them. "You," I motion towards Kristoff. "Sven is your responsibility. You have to make sure he doesn't get us into trouble."

"No problem!" Kristoff makes a strange sort salute at me, and Sven tries his best to imitate the pose.

"You," I crouch down to see Olaf at his own height. "You cannot offer warm hugs to everyone when we are at the Southern Isles, okay? Not everyone is okay with that."

Olaf seems a little distressed about the fact that I have ordered him to refrain from giving everyone hugs, but seems content enough that he can come along anyway, by the way he dances around in the snow.

"And YOU." I rise again and put my index finger sternly against Aidan's chest. He just gazes down at me with that smirk of his. "You are going to lose that arrogant attitude and cut down the funny remarks. This is not a road trip. You will do as I say, or I will put you in an icy cage before you can blink! Am I clear?"

Aidan's smirk widens and he bows dramatically, pulling his cape to the side in a wide gesture. "Whatever you say, _my queen_."

His sarcasm earns him another growl from my lips as I stalk away towards Arendelle, my varied travelling company following behind me, with Aidan in the back.

* * *

><p><em>A.N. And that, my lovelies, is Aidan. Yes, he is sort of a prick, but he's got his good sides too, you'll see soon enough. Elsa and Kristoff are having none of his attitude though.<em>

_Please let me know what you think!_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Return to Arendelle

Aidan tosses his bag that had been slung across his back at Kristoff, waving at him nonchalantly and says: "Won't you carry that for me, Christopher?"

Kristoff glares right back at him and drops the bag onto the ice, letting it slide some distance away. "Carry it yourself. I am not your servant. And it's Kristoff, not Christopher."

Aidan smirks widely at Kristoff and shakes his hair out of his face. "You are no servant, indeed. Being a servant would imply that you would get paid for carrying my stuff, which you are not."

Sven happily dances across the ice and slides towards Aidan's bag, hooks it onto one of the branches of his antlers and brings it right back to Aidan, his tongue lolling happily from his mouth.

Aidan pets Sven gently on his head and motions dramatically to Kristoff. "Good boy, Sven! At least you know how to treat a new friend."

"You are NOT a friend." Kristoff replies, not too kindly, and he stomps off. Sven seems to disagree judging by his happy expression.

I groan internally when I realize I will be stuck with this company for a long while. Kristoff I can handle, I dare say, as well as Olaf and Sven who are just overly happy. Aidan might be a different story, however. His overconfidence and lack of manners get on my nerves, but I think he is also capable and skilled. We will need him, even though I hardly want to admit it.

Aiden earns back a little bit of my respect when he takes his bag from Sven's antlers and repositions it on his back once again. He must have just wanted to antagonize Kristoff a little. Not that that is a sign of good behaviour, not at all. But it's a whole lot better than Aidan actually treating companions as slaves to obey his every order.

As if he hears me think, Aidan pops up next to me. "Would you like ME to carry your bags, my queen? Or are you more of a humble nature and would you insist on carrying mine?"

I grit my teeth before I answer. "In case you didn't notice, Aidan, I do not really have anything at the moment. We'll need to go back to Arendelle to get some supplies before we go after Anna and Hans."

"Do you really think that's a good idea? Last time I spoke to your citizens you weren't exactly on their good side," Aidan says and stays annoyingly in front of me as I continue to walk towards Arendelle over the frozen fjord.

I tighten my jaw and force myself to keep my head high. "We can't just leave Arendelle in ignorance while we go on a trip to save the world from Anna. They deserve to know what is going on. And if they decide to take it out on me, that it's their every right. I will gladly accept the punishment they deem fit."

"That's admirable, but foolish. Foolishness will get you killed. I say we find supplies somewhere else."

I whip myself around and sternly poke my finger against Aidan's chest. "It was you that convinced me to go on this trip and that I have responsibilities to uphold. Don't you go crawling back now I intend to face my problems for once instead of running away from them, and you can't stop me! So either you follow, quietly, or you turn back to your Ashen Mountains and take your rudeness with you!"

I glare for a long moment into his golden-flecked eyes, then shove him out of my way and continue towards Arendelle. After I've walked a little while I can hear his footsteps behind me, quietly following me and I cannot help but smile a little.

The fjord is still completely frozen, and although Kristoff is slipping and sliding left and right, I have no trouble with the surface underfoot. Even Aidan has a moment where is ends up lying flat on the ice, a fire storm brewing on his face in annoyance.

I work to keep my face straight and walk up to him, look down on him and give him a small smile. "What's the matter, Sir Aidan of the Ashen Mountains? Can't handle a little ice?"

He grumbles a bit and avoids my gaze, scrambles up and stomps towards Arendelle once more.

I exchange a glance with Kristoff who is wearing a satisfied grin and I nod lightly at him.

Snow is still falling when we arrive near the edge of the castle, close to where the bridge comes in from the mainland and connect to the castle. The bridge, however, is too high to jump up to, and the stone struts have no indents to grab a hold of.

Aidan is leaning casually against the wall of the castle. "How about a nice staircase, my queen?" There's a challenge hidden in his voice and although I intent to take up that challenge, I hesitate.

My ice has brought so much destruction and pain already. But a simple staircase should be within my power, shouldn't it? I feel Olaf brush against my leg like a kitten made of snow and gaze up at me.

"Don't worry, Elsa. You made an entire palace of ice! You even made me! You can do it!" Olaf flaps his little twig arms happily as he motions violently towards the spot near the bridge.

I brace myself and close my eyes, then let the cold spread through my hands and through my fingertips, flow from my fingers and swirl in white and blue tendrils against the ice. From the lake rises a frozen staircase, similar to the one I had erected on the North Mountain. Only this one has cracks in it, and seems brittle and frail.

Aidan looked at me for a long moment before confidently striding up the steps.

I try to warn him: "Aidan, it doesn't look very stable!", and reach out to him, but he has already strode up the steps and reached the bridge's balustrade.

He looks down on us from the bridge, a smirk evident on his face. "You should have some more confidence in yourself, my queen. You are obviously more capable than you believe yourself to be."

I tilt my head in confusion. His smirk almost seems genuine, his voice free of sarcasm. How odd.

When we have all reached the bridge and Kristoff has practically carried Sven up the steps, I look from the castle to the town a little distance away. Kristoff comes to stand by my side and hesitantly puts a hand on my shoulder.

"Are you sure, Elsa?"

I sigh heavily. "Yes, of course. It's time to face my subjects. They are more than my subjects. They deserve to know what happened. They deserve to do with me as they wish."

Aidan comes to stand by my other side. "Well, it looks like we don't have to go in town after all. The town seems to be coming to us." He points along the bridge where a large crowd is coming our way.

I close my eyes for a moment, then tighten my fists. I have to stand by my duty. I will not run away, not again. I look at the crowd again. They are not close enough to distinguish faces, but at least they are not bearing torches like they do in my nightmares.

I take a step in front of Aidan and Kristoff, and stop both of them when they want to shield me once again. I want to face the crowd head on, unafraid even though my hands slowly begin to shake.

The crowd is getting closer, and I expect screams and curses to erupt, but only silence follows. I can now recognize the Duke of Wesselton and his two bodyguards that I roughed up in my palace, walking at the head of the crowd. At about ten feet, the crowd slows to a halt. The Duke is hiding behind his two bulky bodyguards, and is glaring from behind one of them at me.

"Have you come to bewitch us all, wicked sorceress?! We'll have you burned for what you did to Arendelle!"

There goes a murmur through the crowd. No one is speaking out against him, but the murmuring isn't in agreement either. It's indecision that is prominent on most faces.

Kristoff steps forward, though, before I can stop him. "She is not wicked! She was just scared, okay!"

"Enough, Kristoff." I gently pull Kristoff back and step forward, my hands folded behind my back to not show their shaking. "I come before you at your mercy." I tell them calmly. "It's my fault that our beloved kingdom is cloaked in ice and snow. It is my fault that everyone is cold at night." I take a moment to look at all the faces. "I did not wish to freeze all of Arendelle. It was a horrible, horrible mistake because I was afraid of what you all would think of me if you found out about my powers. I only meant to make my way to the North Mountain and stay there."

A small girl steps forward from the crowd, a brave look of determination on her face. "But you are our queen! We would never hurt you!" she squeaks loudly, before her mother quickly grabs her by the arm and pulls her back.

"I know I acted out of fear, and it was far from rational. I would lift this winter from this land if only I knew how. I am afraid that if I try, I might make things worse." I gulp heavily, but continue anyway. "Please, let me finally take responsibility for my actions and devise whatever punishment you deem fit for me. I will take it without question." My hands are clenched behind my back, and my nails are digging into my skin. I manage to keep my head high, though, which is more than I expected.

A soft murmur goes through the crowd. The Duke, however, still glares at me.

"It's a trap, a trap I say! Burn the witch! If she will not bring back summer we will do it on our own!" The Duke pushes his two guards towards me, and both of them raise their arms, ready to grab me. I flinch and hold my hands in front of my face as I await their rough hands to grab a hold of me.

The murmur in the crowd turns to discontent, then determination. Several men grab the Duke and his guards from behind and pull them back, pinning their arms behind their backs. I lower my hands and watch as nearly everyone in the crowd glares at the Duke and his guards.

At the same time the guards were pulled back, Aidan manages to work his way in front of me and draw his falchion, adopting a defensive stand. Within a flash, the falchion rests against the Duke's throat and anger flares up in Aidan's eyes. "You will die before you hurt a single silver hair upon her head," he growls.

I stare for a long moment at Aidan's back in surprise, then gently grab his shoulder and pull him back. He gazes at me with a mixture of loyalty and reluctance to remove his falchion from the Duke's throat. He does so, when I lightly pressure his arm.

"With your permission, please remove the Duke and his guards from this vicinity," I ask the men who have taken a hold of them, and they all nod and retreat through the crowd, taking the Duke and his guards with them.

"Foul play!" The Duke yells as he his dragged from the crowd. "Foul play, I say! You will all regret- " his yelling is cut short when the man that is dragging him away puts a ball of cloth in his mouth.

A woman I recognize from earlier and happier years steps from the crowd. "Please, your Majesty, can you not tell us what happened?"

I nod lightly and fold my hands in front of me this time. "I will. You deserve as much for what I have done to you."

Kristoff gently puts his hand on my shoulder and nods encouragingly, and Olaf sits his plump little snow butt down next to me, his eyes as big as a child's minutes away from receiving a bedtime story.

"I have struggled with these powers for years. My father, the king, decided that it would be best to keep my powers hidden from all, even Anna. I thought I could learn control, but it seems that I can't, as you are well aware." I motion vaguely all around us, towards the winter that I set into motion. "I did not mean to, I promise you all, and I would thaw it if I only knew how."

I wait for a moment to let the crowd react and receive their judgement. The woman that stepped forward, murmurs for a moment with a few others in the crowd then steps forward again, a slight smile on her face.

"Your Majesty, we know you are afraid. Please do not fear us, and we will not fear you. We know it was an accident. Most of us still remember when the gates were still open, and we remember that time fondly. We know the late king and queen raised you and your sister well." The woman turns to look at the crowd for a moment, then turns back to me again. "We will wait out this winter, your Majesty, until you find a way to thaw it. As you said, it was an accident, and we will patiently await the return of summer."

I huff in relief as the crowd murmurs in agreement with what the woman said. But my relief is of a short duration when the woman asks: "Where is your sister, your Majesty? We saw her return from the mountain, but.. her hair.. it was as white as yours.."

"Anna is.. in trouble. She and Hans.. They've gone to the Southern Isles. I must go and.. try and get her back," I stumble over my words. Despite that my subjects have agreed to wait as long as need for this winter to end, I am not sure how they would react to the news that their queen turned her little sister in a cruel monster.

The woman from the crowd steps forward again. "If you are to follow Anna, then you will need supplies, of course. I will inform your staff that you will want to leave soon, your Majesty. By your leave, of course."

I take a step forward and grasp the woman's hands in my own. "Thank you.." I whisper to her as I hold on to her hands tightly. She smiles and gives my own hands a tight squeeze. "You're not alone, your Majesty," she whispers back, and I feel a simple smile of relief creep onto my face.

I stare in the mirror at myself and hardly recognize myself. Freya, one of the women in my parents' staff, or rather, my staff, is lightly brushing my white hair. No matter how she tries to part my hair to two sides, the strands just jump back in their place.

Freya had me put off my icy blue dress, and relinquish the crystal shoes. I'm wearing a light blue tunic with long sleeves fastened around my waist with a black belt. Soft black leather pants fit perfectly around my legs and black leather boots are tied up to my knees.

Freya hums so very softly as she gives up on my hair and puts it back in its braid. "The braid is nice, but you look lovely with your hair loose, your Majesty."

I nod slowly and observe myself in the mirror. "This was your mother's, your Majesty," Freya says as she gently puts a dark-blue, heavy cloak over my shoulders. It has a hood that can be put up if necessary, and light blue stitching of snowflakes along the edge.

"It's beautiful," I say breathlessly, my fingers trailing along the snowflakes. "Thank you Freya. For everything."

"It is my pleasure," Freya replies, curtsying slightly. She leaves me to look at myself a bit longer and retreats from the room.

I twiddle a little with the tip of my braid that is slung along my shoulder. I look myself up and down one last time, then say goodbye to my childhood room, for now.

As I walk down the hallway and go down the stairs, I can still hear Anna knock on my door, asking if I want to build a snowman. Memories of riding on our bike, having snowball fights in the ballroom and stealing chocolate from the kitchen hit me as I continue down the staircase. The staircase leads to the main hall, where Aidan is waiting.

He has exchanged his blood red cloak for a heavier one, in a darker red and golden stitching along the edge. My eyes widen and I halt a few steps from the bottom as I recognize the cloak as my father's. Aidan hears my footsteps halt and turns around towards me.

His eyes widen too and he quickly eyes me up and down.

"My Queen.. you look.." he starts, then he coughs loudly. "Ready, you look very ready," he finishes.

"As do you, Aidan. Tell me, who gave you that cloak?" I reply as I come down the last few steps.

"Someone of your staff, I believe. They said that it would be slightly less conspicuous than my other cloak. Why, was it not theirs to give?"

I finally come to a halt about two feet from him and gently grab the edge of his cloak. I let the golden stitching run beneath my fingers. "It was my father's."

I see Aidan tense at my words and I would smile if it weren't for the situation. "Do you.. should I leave it here?"

For a long moment I let the dark red fabric run through my fingers until I finally look up at Aidan and meet his eyes with my own. I gently pat de fabric and straighten it around Aidan's shoulders. "No, you keep it. My father would not have wanted it to gather dust in a closet. It's better if you put it to use."

I turn and stride towards the front doors, having had enough of this dreary palace for now, leaving Aidan in the main hall, confused and slightly surprised.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Strawberry Farm

"Oof!" I gasp as I stumble forward, unbalanced by whatever hit me in the back. I turn around and scowl as I see Aidan casually shaping a second snowball in his gloved hands. He smirks at him, and I give him one of my iciest glares, while gently padding the snow of my mother's deep-blue cloak.

"Must you really be such a nuisance?" I snap coldly.

"Of course. Someone has to keep everyone on their toes." Aidan threw the snowball in his hands towards Sven, who happily caught it with his mouth. Aidan then made his way back to my side, while I stubbornly continued to walk.

"You'd make this journey a whole lot easier if you quit the crap, Aidan. It's really very annoying."

Aidan relinquished the smirk and turned his gaze relatively serious. "It's better than walk in constant silence. You are too caught up in your guilt to say much. Kristoff is feeling as if he came short concerning Anna and is constantly thinking of new ways he could have saved her. Sven is a reindeer and even Olaf does not contain enough happiness in that tiny body of his to keep our spirits high."

I know he is right. I make a terrible travel companion. I am grumpy and withdrawn, and lead the group astray as many times as I lead them the right way.

"Don't you want to throw some snow back, my Queen? Or have you forgotten what fun is?" Aidan taunts. I have no desire to pause your journey to play like pups, but if it will get that smirk of Aidan's face, maybe then. Without thinking, I form a snowball about two feet in width above my head and launch it at Aidan. His smirk disappears as the sphere hits him in the chest and takes him down to the ground.

I stride over to him and crouch near the pile of snow that's got a few limbs sticking out from underneath. I smile sweetly as Aidan's head appears from underneath the snow. "Was that enough for you, Master Aidan of the Ashen Mountains?"

Aidan shakes his head free from the snow and gives me a slightly embarrassed smirk. He works his way from the heap of snow and brushes the residues of the white snow off his clothes. I gulp slightly when I see him straighten his red cloak, which once belonged to my father.

Kristoff has walked further ahead and is waving to us. Hidden in the snowy landscape lies a farm, covered in snow. My breath halts for a moment in my throat and Aidan hears it. He gently lays his hand on my shoulder.

"You know this place?"

"I came here a long time ago." I mutter softly, then start to thread my way through the snow.

As I come closer to the farm, the state of the building becomes clear. The roof has collapsed and the windows and doors are completely gone or are hanging by a single hinge. Snow covers both the cracked wooden floor and the residues of what was once a large farm. Fences mark where once were large meadows and the remains of a well are situated right next to what once was the main house.

Kristoff has made his way inside the building and is rummaging through the rubble. When I join him inside, he looks at me with a sad glint in his eyes. "I knew the owners.." he mutters softly. "I didn't know.. I didn't know what happened here."

I sadly glance around the inside of the farm. The fireplace is now simply a pile of stones. There is wood everywhere, but most of it is charred and falling to pieces. "I knew them too." I reply softly.

"Mother and father would take me and Anna here sometimes. They used to grow strawberries here." I fall silent.

Mother always had to have fresh strawberries for dessert. She would take me and Anna there, and let us pick the biggest and reddest strawberries we could find. Those strawberries with whipped cream and ice, it was the best taste beside chocolate of my childhood.

"Looks like there was a fire.. Let's hope the owners got out in time," Kristoff says softly, his hand running down the stone, black wall.

I do another round of the inside of the farm when I walk into Aidan. His jaw is tense and his eyes are flitting along the charred walls and ashes. His fists are clenched tightly and his whole body is tense and rigid. When he finally spots me, he does the best he can to relax his stance, but his muscles remain tense.

"Aidan? Are you alright?" I ask him, eyeing him up and down for injury or any other cause of his tension.

"I'm fine. I.. I just need some air." With a whirl of his red cloak, he is gone from the building, leaving me and Kristoff to wander the ruins of the farm alone.

Somewhere in the distance I can hear Olaf singing happily as he holds onto Sven's antlers. Sven is running happily through the heaps of snow, dodging and whirling, trying to throw the snowman off in a fun little game.

"It seems so long ago.." I mutter more to myself than to anyone in particular. "I remember one time my mother and father brought us here, and it was Anna's first time here. She used to be skittish, even shy when it came to strange places and strangers. But when we came here, Hilda and Oswald just wrapped her up.. They were her new favourite people from the start. They were so kind.."

A soft, gentle clapping of hands comes to my ears and I turn around, expecting to find Aidan ready to snicker at my story, but my breath once again has trouble escaping my throat.

"Such a moving, cute little story. Unfortunately for you, I have changed a lot since that moment," Anna snickers and appears from behind the old chimney. She is wearing her hair loose and a slim crown made of ice graces her auburn hair. A long black cloak is wrapped around her shoulders and underneath she's wearing a midnight blue dress. A sneer is plastered to her face and her eyes stand so, so cold.

I want to run to her, cup her face in between my hands and hug her close. But that cold glare has me rooted to the ground, locked into place as I watch her slowly come closer and closer. I gaze sideways and see that Kristoff is locked in a similar trans, but he shakes his head and seems to snap out of it.

"Anna! Anna please! You have to listen to me!" he pleads, his arms half-outstretched to her.

A growl appears on Anna's face and she points her hand to the ground below Kristoff's feet, turning it to sleek ice. With the next step, Kristoff slips and falls backwards onto the ground. When he is lying on the ground, she sweeps with her arm and his limbs are locked in an icy embrace.

She turns her gaze back to me and shakes her head ever so slightly. "You should have stayed in Arendelle, sister. I was lenient in Arendelle, because of our shared blood. But not anymore. I told you not to follow me, and yet.." She snickers loudly. "So, so stubborn. You were just as stubborn when I knocked on your door."

She motions to herself and her grimace grows. "I thought that I could be more stubborn than you. I thought I could bear the isolation until you would come back to me. So I kept on knocking. Every day, Elsa! Every day!" Her voice grows higher and higher, more hysterical with every word she utters.

"I KEPT ON KNOCKING, KNOCKING AND KNOCKING. But there was no answer. There NEVER was an answer!" She's screaming at me now, and her hair is flailing around her face as she shakes in pure anger.

"Anna, you don't understand.. I'm.. I'm sorry.." I mutter so softly, but my voice creaks and breaks.

She ignores me and icy winds begin to whip through the broken farm. Snow starts to blow through the gaping hole in the roof and blows my cloak around us.

Anna is now close enough to touch, but my arms feel so, so heavy. Anna snickers again and lets her hand gently touch my blue cloak. "This was mom's.." she mutters softly. "You don't deserve it."

I stumble backwards and hit a charred wall with my back. Anna follows me with a stealth and elegance that her frozen heart seems to have provided her with, as well as that cold, icy glare.

"You should have never followed me, sister. You finally could have been rid of me. You could have Arendelle to yourself. You could have rid yourself of annoying, clingy, little Anna. You could have been rid of ME," she yells in my face and whips herself around. Her fists are clenched at her sides and are shaking with anger.

I just hold my head with my hands and try not to shake, try to stop the shivering. But this violent, screaming creature cannot be my sister. She cannot have changed so much. And yet she did. And it's all my fault.

Anna has gone to hover close to Kristoff again. She is trailing her fingers across his cheek and a small smile plays across her lips. "Oh Kristoff. Sweet, strong Kristoff. Loving me enough to race back to Arendelle to save me.. I think I might bring you with me to the Southern Isles. You can reach high places for me, rub my back now and then. What a good pet you will make."

"No Anna, please! You can't take him with you!" I manage to cry out in my worry. Kristoff has grown on me for the duration of our short journey together, and he is dear to.. old Anna. If anything happens to him.. I'll have to add it to my list of things that are my fault.

"Don't worry, sister. Worry about yourself. You won't be so lucky." Anna's voice is even colder than it was back on the fjord.

Hans appears from behind the old chimney with that stupid grin on his face. "You should return to your little kingdom, Elsa, while you still have something."

I grit my teeth and anger blazes through me. My hand curls up into a fist and a sharp icicle form in it. With a sharp intake of air I throw it at him, but he steps out of the way quickly. The icicle grazes his perfect little cheek, though, and to my satisfaction I see a small trickle of blood appear from the thin wound.

"You bitch.." he snaps and throws himself at me, but Anna barks an order at him and he stops immediately, breathing heavily.

"Stop, Hans. She's mine to destroy, not yours." Anna presses her hand to Kristoff's forehead and tilts her head as she watches him. He begins to shiver violently, and after only seconds his face turns pale and his lips turn blue. His eyelids flutter and close and his head hangs limply against his chest.

"Anna.. Anna what did you do?!" I yell out at her.

"Don't worry, he just lost consciousness for a little bit. If you lower someone's temperature far enough, it's remarkable how the body reacts. It just shuts down, except for the vital organs. Fascinating, and very useful in moving someone that might be unwilling." Anna looks absent-mindedly at Kristoff's face. She raises her hand and drags a nail down his cheek, leaving a thin wound that lets a single drop of blood roll down his cheek.

"Don't hurt him.. Anna.. please.." I manage to utter and I stumble to my feet, wobbling my way to her. "You're not this person, Anna.. you would never hurt him.."

Anna straightens from her crouch and nods to Hans, who grabs Kristoff's arm, wraps him around his shoulder and lifts him up with a loud grunt. He begins to wobble out of the broken farm, stumbling under Kristoff's weight. I watch him go and try to force my limbs to do anything, but my mind is blank, except for the guilt that keeps chipping away at my soul.

"I think I'll leave you here, sister." Anna is face to face with me again. "I gave you a chance to keep your life, but you decided to give up that chance by following me."

She starts to walk up and down in front of me, glaring at me now and then. "I begged you for so long to open that door, Elsa, but you never did. You never did. You might have frozen my heart, but yours has been frozen from the day you shut that door."

"That's not true.. Anna.. we used to be so close.."

"We used to, yes. But you shut me out. Well, now I will shut you out, forever." A wicked grin appears on Anna's face. "I should leave you here, encased in ice, forever. An eternity of loneliness should suffice to bring you some idea of the loneliness I suffered. Perhaps, I will free you some day. Perhaps."

She reaches out her hand to my forehead and I flinch back, but I can't back up much further as my back hits the old chimney. She smiles at me and takes a step back. "You're right. I do not have to be gentle with you. You don't deserve gentleness." She now stands about 10 feet away from me, her hand outstretched, and an icy globe forming in front of her hand.

"Farewell, sister. May you stay frozen forever," Anna mutters solemnly and releases the globe of snow and it grows, enveloping me and the chimney. I throw my hands up in front of my face and flinch back, my back hitting the chimney behind me. Immediately I can feel my arms grow heavier and colder. My limbs are getting harder to move and my vision blurs and fades to black and back again. Icy swirls crawl across my skin as my fingers turn an icy blue.

I close my eyes and ready myself to be frozen in this desolated strawberry farm. Forever.

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><p><em>A.N. Oh snappedoodles! Ain't that a lovely cliffhanger? Please let me know what you think!<em>


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Damn long Forever

_A.N. EDIT. I had to re-upload this chapter as some of the inserted horizontal lines did not want to be inserted. Most of you lovely folk probably got two mails or messages or whatever that I posted a new chapter and for that I want to apologize! Happy readings!_

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><p>"Farewell, sister. May you stay frozen forever," Anna mutters solemnly and releases the globe of snow and it grows, enveloping me and the chimney. I throw my hands up in front of my face and flinch back, my back hitting the chimney behind me. Immediately I can feel my arms grow heavier and colder. My limbs are getting harder to move and my vision blurs and fades to black and back again. Icy swirls crawl across my skin as my fingers turn an icy blue.<p>

I close my eyes and ready myself to be frozen in this desolated strawberry farm. Forever.

The cold grows stronger and stronger, and my high tolerance to the cold is shattered. My nerves erupt in pain as it feels like the cold stabs over and over again into my flesh. A horrific shriek comes over my lips as I try to deal with the pain, but screaming does nothing to alleviate the pain.

I've given up. All I want now is for the pain to go away and to leave me in peace. Leave me to die.

With a growl that I do not dare classify as human, a red blur throws itself in front of me. Suddenly, the icy light of Anna's cone of cold is split apart by a great storm of gold and red. Despite the pain, I open my eyes and behold a wall of fire, dancing and flaring across my field of vision. In between the wall of flames and me stands a silhouette with a cloak that swivels around him, yet the figure remains untouched by the fire. His hands are outstretched and reach forward, as if to push the wall of fire forward.

The inferno of flames becomes too bright for my eyes and I have to wrench them shut, and am once again alone in the dark with the stabbing pain. I can faintly distinguish the roar of the fire that grows and subsides, flares up again, then diminishes completely. The glow of the flames that had been visible even through my eyelids dwindles, but unfortunately my pain does not.

The pain seems to be burning through my veins and flesh alike, slowly making its way to my heart, freezing everything in its wake. I start to whimper and trash, trying to either get rid of the pain or encourage it on, so that the end may come swifter. I faintly feel hands cupping my face, fingers pressing to find my pulse.

A faint voice calling out my name. I recognize Anna's shriek somewhere in the distance, and the wall of fire erupts into my vision again. I faintly hear Anna again, but she is not shrieking in pain, but in frustration.

Someone is holding me, one hand supporting my neck and the other grasping my wrist. I try to struggle as that someone applies pressure to my wrist, increasing the cold's stabbing pain for a short while. And then there's heat. Searing through my flesh, burning away the cold, but causing me pain just as great. The fire seems to begin in my wrist and neck, and races through my veins, through my limbs and searing my muscles.

Two powers now begin their race towards my heart; the cold, having a head start, and the fire that is quickly gaining. My body spasms and trashes violently, my hands clawing at my chest as heat and cold collide within me. Desperately I try to recall my father and mother's faces, but they blur and glitch as I try to fight the searing pain.

My back arches as fire and ice reach my heart simultaneously. My eyes flutter open and I see a face hovering closely above my own. There's fire in those golden eyes. Fire and worry.

The heat and cold within me have dissolved. My vision is still blurry, but feeling returns to my chest and limbs. With it comes a soreness as if I've just ran for the past few days. With a groan, I close my eyes and shut out the blurry face, and curl up into a ball as best I can. Strong arms pull me against a chest and lift me up. Every step taken sends a wave of exhaustion over me and soon I drift in and out of darkness.

Who knows how long it takes before I am finally put down. A cloak is wrapped around me, and as I flutter open my eyes, I see a spark bring forth a small fire.

"Aidan?" I mutter softly, and the figure that had been crouched next to the fire comes to my side. It takes a while to focus my vision, but when it does I can clearly distinguish Aidan's black hair and golden eyes, faintly glowing in the light of the small fire.

"Shh. You shouldn't talk," he mumbles softly as he adjusts the cloak around me. I gaze at him and see a mixture of worry, guilt and determination in his eyes.

"What d-did Anna do to me?" I murmur as I watch Aidan feed the fire.

"She tried to imitate what almost happened to herself," Aidan says, avoiding my question. I glare at him and when he catches my glare he sighs. "She tried to freeze you to solid ice, Elsa. Like what was supposed to happen to her when you froze her heart."

I don't reply to his comment and simply try to cope with his words and the painful statement behind it. For a long moment I simply observe him as he moves around the camp, tending to the fire, and making a makeshift roof from branches.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I say, and I flinch as the tone underneath my words is so very accusing. Aidan looks at me and pulls a hand through his hair, messing it up even more.

"You know why, Elsa. You know what it's like to keep a secret, and how hard it is to trust anyone with it."

"But surely you are the same as me.. Surely you could have trusted me to know."

Aidan shakes his head and sadness creeps into his eyes. "I've known several.. Curselings, as people from my home call people like me and you. They each met their ending before their time, Elsa. If I had told you.. it could have gone wrong too quickly. I had no choice to keep it from you."

"Curselings?" I whisper, and Aidan nods. I try to press for more answers, but my vision blurs for a moment and Aidan is suddenly by my side.

"You can control it? You can control the fire?" I demand to know from him, even though my eyelids feel so very heavy.

Aidan nods after a long moment of thinking. "I can."

"You have to.. teach me.." I mutter as I fight off a wide yawn.

"You should rest. Your body is trying to cope and heal, and you have to give it a chance to," Aidan mutters softly. He supports me as he gently lowers me to the forest floor, that he has cleared of snow, and props up my mother's blue cloak as a make-shift pillow. He makes sure that his red cloak is fully covering me, then takes a seat next to me, resting against a nearby tree. "Sleep.." he murmurs again and I release a heavy sigh as I give into my body's demands for darkness.

* * *

><p>I suddenly open my eyes and try to sit upright, but my body is shivering so violently that I cannot control my limbs. Somewhere far away I can hear Sven call out to me, calling for an answer, but right now the chattering of my teeth is the only sound I can produce. There is a faint throbbing on my cheek, and I can feel that blood has gently oozed out of a thin wound.<p>

_Okay Kristoff, time to sit up, _I think to myself, but my body is not so willing.

The shivering does not cease and I try to control my breathing. I try to curl up in a ball and warm myself, but my hands and feet are tied, making it difficult to move overall. Still shivering, I finally take a look around. I'm lying on a wooden platform with a variety of bags and boxes stacked up around me. The curves of the wood remind me of a sled, and soon enough my suspicions are confirmed.

Hans is leading Sven by a harness past the edge of my vision, and Sven is more than unwilling. He could easily throw Hans off, but he keeps turning his head towards me, and I know that he's keeping my compromised position in mind.

"Sven.." I manage to say through my chattering teeth, and Sven immediately jumps up and throws Hans to the ground. Once free from Hans' restraining hands, the reindeer tries to climb on top of the back of the sled, where I am positioned, calling loudly to me.

I weakly manage to lift up my head and shake my head at him and try to let him know that he should run and leave me, but Sven simply bellows at me loudly, trying once more to reach me.

Hans curses loudly and pulls Sven away from the back of the sled, tugging violently on his harness.

"Come here, you dumb animal. You're going to help us make a little trip to my old home," Hans mutters as he tries to pull Sven in front of the sled, but the reindeer's attention is solely on me. He bellows again, and agony rips through my heart.

Sven continues to pull away from Hans, even throws him to the ground a few times just to come near the back of the sled, until Hans has had enough. He grabs Sven's antler and positions his head towards me, lying bound and vulnerable in the back of the sled.

"Look, you oversized mule. You're precious Kristoff is not within your reach. He is, however, within mine." Hans pulls a small dagger in a flash and casually points it at my throat. "Now you are going to pull this sled and be done with your attitude, or I will cut your friend to pieces. Am I clear?"

Sven bellows loudly and looks at me in panic, and I know that he will throw Hans off at any moment and trample him or skewer him with his antlers. That, however, will still leave him at Hans' mercy and my heart feels like it is stabbed when I imagine Sven getting hurt.

"It's.. o-okay, S-sven.. P-please.." I manage to stutter through my shivering and chattering. Sven gazes at me with those big eyes and my heart aches once more before I steel myself. My resolve disappears when Anna enters my field of vision.

"I will lower his heart rate as quickly as you can run, Sven, if you don't comply. Now shoo, get into place." Anna's voice is cold, so very cold. So unlike the happy young woman that crashed my sled into the side of a mountain, or unlike the flitting young woman that I held as she turned cold. The young woman that I tried to save to the best of my abilities.

Sven lets out a last, sad grunt, and then slowly walks to the front of the sled, his head hanging. "There's a good boy," I hear Anna say. "Reindeer can be so compliant, if you give them the right motivation, don't you agree, Kristoff?" Anna has taken a seat on the front of the sled and gazes over her shoulder at me, a triumphant smile plastered to her face.

Disgust suddenly gets the best of me and the urge to vomit grows stronger, but I manage to keep it in. Disgust is then replaced by longing for the old Anna, the Anna that I tried to save.

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><p>I stretch and yawn, my mind still blissfully blank as the sun's first rays creep through the forest. Something cold is nestled near my feet, and when I take a look I see Olaf lying flat on his back, snoring happily.<p>

Any moment now I expect Kristoff to make a funny remark about Olaf, but when he does not I panic.

"Kristoff?! Kristoff?!" I shriek, and rise from my spot near the smouldering fire.

Aidan comes bounding towards the camp, a wary look in his eyes as he scans the camp. Dark shadows have crept underneath his eyes, and the wary look makes them even darker, but his face softens as he sees it's just me.

I bound around the camp, looking wildly for any sign of either Sven or Kristoff, but when I cannot find either of them, I fall to my knees, whimpering softly as I bury my face in my hands. My body shocks and my breathing comes difficult as tears roll down my cheeks.

"I'm so sorry.. I'm so sorry Kristoff.." I mumble softly to myself.

Warm arms wrap themselves around my shoulders and gently pull me into a hug. Aidan rubs my back and murmurs kind words to me as I try to regain a steady breathing rhythm.

"It wasn't you fault, Elsa.. Anna had both of you cornered.." he mutters.

"You don't understand.. it WAS my f-fault, Aidan. He loves Anna and s-she loves.. loved.. him. Because of me! Because of me she's like this! Because of me he's now at the mercy of Anna's evil side."

Aidan cups my face with both of his hands and forces my eyes on his. "Listen to me, Elsa. Anna's actions are not your responsibility. You could not control your power back then.."

I try to shake my head gently from his soft grasp. "You don't understand! I still cannot control it! But.. but you.. You can! You can teach me! Teach me the control that I've wanted all my life, so we can save Kristoff and thaw Anna's heart!" My hysteria has turned to sudden determination and I watch Aidan closely for is immediate reaction. His initial reaction is doubt, followed by more doubt.

He releases me from his embrace and rises to take a few steps back. He shakes his head at me. "Elsa.. We can assume that Anna and Hans are far ahead of us now. On foot, it's about two weeks to the Southern isles. I cannot teach you anything more than the basics of the basics in those two weeks. It's impossible."

"Then the basics will have to do! If it gives me a chance to right my wrongs and save both Anna and Kristoff, I must take it!" I rise as well and fumble wildly with my hands.

There is still doubt in Aidan's eyes, and something else I cannot distinguish. Maybe it's a low blow, but if it will sway him, I am willing to use it.

"Please Aidan. You must know what it is like to have no control. You must have hurt people. Perhaps.. lost them too, because you couldn't control your power. You must know that guilt. I know you do!" I yell at him.

My low blow has worked. Agony mixes with guilt and anger in Aidan's golden eyes.

"I do know that guilt," Aidan simply states, his voice so calm that it frightens me. "And that's exactly why I do not want to teach you in a mere two weeks. Under that stress and pressure, I could ruin your control forever. Forever is a damn long time, Elsa!"

"Forever is a damn long time without Anna. Forever is a damn long time in itself!" I counter, placing my hands on my hips.

"Damn it, Elsa! This is serious business! I've seen people burn their own homes to the ground because they lost control! I've seen earthquakes made by Curselings that destroyed entire kingdoms! I've seen death up close because I COULDN'T KEEP CONTROL." Aidan's voice is so, so angry and sad at the same time. I am putting him through pain, and I know it. I can feel it in my own heart.

"You cannot ask this of me! You cannot ask me to risk your life, your kingdom. You cannot ask me to do that to you!" Aidan turns away from me and pulls a hand through his hair, cursing under his breath.

I take a deep breath and take a few steps towards him, gently sliding my hand into his. "Aidan, please. I am determined. Either I will go out after Anna myself in my current state, or you teach me some kind of control and I face her then. I will try and thaw her heart, with or without your help." I gently place my other hand on his cheek and turn his face toward me. "Please," I repeat softly.

All anger dissolves from Aidan's eyes, leaving only sadness behind. He gazes for a long moment at me and barely blinks. "Alright. Alright," Aidan huffs softly and lets his head hang for a bit. I quickly rise on my toes and press a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you, Aidan."

As I release his hand from mine I see that the campfire has started to set ablaze again, and for a long moment I watch as the flames dance over the ashes, having no kind of fuel, but blazing nonetheless.

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><p><em>And that's it for chapter 5. Please let me know what you lovelies think of Aidan as an OC. I've got a whole past for him planned out, but I want to know you guys' opinions in case I need to tweak it a bit. <em>

_Also I really like ANGSTY CONVERSATION holy moley. _


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Fire of the past

_A.N. Sorry for the long wait. There's been a lot of stress and illness and family angst in the past few weeks. A little warning that this chapter functions mainly to give some backstory to Aidan. Therefor there is lots of dialogue and angsty conversation. Just to let you lovelies know._

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><p>The first rays of the sun haven't crept over the trees yet when I hear Aidan softly walk around the camp. He feeds the fire until it crackles and shoots sparks up to the lightening sky, then walks around the fire to the spot where I am resting.<p>

"I'm awake," I state simply as I feel him crouch near me and stretch out his hand to wake me. He freezes and slowly retracts his hand, nodding slowly at me as I turn around and look at him. There is a tension in his jaw and an unwillingness in his eyes. He doesn't want to train me. He doesn't want to hasten me.

There is no other choice, though.

I sit up and rise from the ground, gently beating the dust off my cloak and clothes. I then face Aidan again, whose eyes stand ever reluctant.

"I'm ready. We can start right away." My voice is so determined, but I can feel doubt creeping up my spine.

Aidan shakes his head though. "You have to eat something first."

"I'm not hungry."

Aidan narrows his eyes and the tension in his jaw increases as he forces himself not to spill a variety of curses at me.

"Don't be a fool, Elsa. I am not teaching you without something in your stomach."

"Why are we arguing when we are losing precious time?!" I explode. "Two weeks! Two weeks, Aidan! We have two weeks to get to the Southern Isles and teach me some kind of control."

Aidan stubbornly shakes his head. "Two weeks is too short. You are risking everything the slim chance that Anna doesn't hurt Kristoff in that time, if she hasn't already! If you would just.. If we could just take some more time.."

"You know we cannot afford more time. Two weeks is already pushing it! Kristoff is in danger because of me, and we need to thaw Anna's heart before she gets too used to her powers." I cross my arms and stubbornly glare back at Aidan. "Besides. You _promised._"

"I did not _promise_ anything, although I did agree." Aidan's glare grows in intensity as he strides towards me with his long legs and towers slightly over me. "But don't test me, Elsa. You are a beautiful, young woman, a queen, even, but don't think I won't fight you just because of that. I can be way more stubborn than you ever will be, believe me."

I maintain my glare for a little while longer before rewarding him with wide smile. "You think I'm beautiful? That's sweet!"

An awkward smile forms on Aidan's face, but he quickly shakes it away, gaining that serious expression once more.

We quickly consume a meagre breakfast in silence and avoid each other's gaze as much as we can. After that, Aidan lets the fire die out and gestures for me to follow him. He leads me to a larger clearing in the woods, snow covering the level floor. We both take our cloaks off and safely put them away from the clearing, away from any dangerous fire and/or ice.

After our cloaks have been secured, my mouth falls open in surprise as Aidan begins to take off his shirt. I can feel my cheeks redden and quickly turn around before I see too much of his pale skin and clench my fists at my sides.

"WHAT are you doing?!" I growl with my back turned to Aidan.

"Oh don't work yourself up. It's just for training purposes," Aidan grumbles at me.

"Are you kidding? I am not fighting you while you're half naked!"

"Who said I would be HALF naked?" Aidan snickers, and the red hue my cheeks have taken intensifies. I want to turn around and throw things at him, but then I realise that he is joking. Surely, he is joking. Surely.

"You people from Arendelle are too reserved. There's nothing wrong with showing a little skin. Besides, we are literally going to play with fire, and it would be a shame if your pretty, precious clothes got burned, now would it?"

"I don't care about the clothes! I am not.. I won't!" I say firmly, crossing my arms stubbornly while I am desperately trying to think of things that will remove the red colour from my cheeks.

"You are acting like a child that doesn't want to their chores!" Aidan genuinely sounds annoyed now. "I mean, sure. Have it your way. Let's just return to Arendelle and hope that Anna doesn't desire world domination next. Let's leave Kristoff to her mercy while you can get nice and comfortable in your little castle. Maybe you could order some new dresses that completely cover every inch of your body while you are at it." Aidan's voice nearly drips with all the sarcasm he puts into his words.

"Fine! I get it." My frustration gets the best of my discomfort and I turn around, glaring sharply at Aidan, who is standing nonchalantly in the middle of the clearing. His shirt is tossed to the side and Aidan has removed his boots as well. I risk a glance at his bared chest and am rewarded with a muscled, but lean chest, and a slight patch of black hair indicating a path to his groin. Somehow that makes me even more flustered and I turn around yet again.

It takes a while for Aidan to explain to me that showing skin is perfectly normal in the area around the Ashen Mountains where he hails from, mostly because of the many volcanoes that occupy that area and thus rises the average temperature in the areas directly adjacent to these volcanoes. After a while he convinces me that it is more beneficial to at least shed my top shirt, leaving me in a simple tank top and my pants. He also convinces me to remove my shoes, which I simply shrug at, because, believe it or not, the cold of the snow on the ground never bothered me anyway.

When we are both in position, with Aidan bare-chested and my arms bared, Aidan orders me to freeze him.

"Excuse me?" I stare at him.

"I'm serious. Freeze me."

"I'm not going to freeze you."

"You'd rather keep ogling at me and blushing?" Aidan snickers.

"I changed my mind," I growl. "I will gladly freeze you."

Without hesitation I form a large ball of ice above my palm and throw it at Aidan with as much power as I can muster. Aidan simply steps aside and slowly shakes his head. "You are acting on a whim! Improvisation is not the most important thing in battle! Use your head!"

I growl again in frustration and change my ice balls to large icicles, making them sharper with each throw.

"You are letting your frustration and anger get the best of you. Focus!" Aidan growls back, dodging and twisting out of the way of my icy spears.

This continues for a little while, until my arms are too fatigued and my knees are shaking. While I try to catch my breath, a sudden wall of fire appears in between Aidan and me and rushes towards me. I throw my arms up in front of my face, expecting to feel the heat sizzling my flesh, but other than unbearable warmth, nothing follows.

The wall of fire has dissipated, and Aidan is gazing at me with his arms crossed. "Never give into fatigue," he simply states.

"That's easy for you to say! I can barely stand!"

"I don't care! If you give in whenever you get a little tired, you are done for! You don't give into fatigue. Ever!" Aidan extends his hand to me and I reluctantly grab it.

"Now do it again," says Aidan as he pulls me up.

I begrudgingly comply, and for the next four hours he pushes me far beyond the limits I thought I had. When Aidan finally announces lunch, I am too sore to sit, stand or move. Instead, I awkwardly lay on my side, slightly curled up and nibble a little on a piece of dried meat.

The worst, however, is yet to come. Despite teaching me some kind of control, Aidan also pushes me when we travel towards the Southern isles. It's a long way, without horses, and until we can get some somewhere, we are bound by our own feet.

Aidan doesn't encourage me or tell me that it's almost time for a break. He simply walks in front of me, climbing hills, crossing rivers and scrambling down steep hillsides. Because he moves swiftly in pretty much all landscapes we encounter, he is quick to create distance between us, as I am not used to travelling on foot so much. That and my aching muscles from our earlier sparring session make me a lot slower than Aidan, but since he does not adjust his pace for me, I have to force myself forward in order to keep him in my vision.

When the sun has disappeared and the last golden glow vanishes from the sky, I finally stumble into an open clearing on the side of a cliff, protected from the cold wind by surrounding rocks. Aidan has already started a fire, and is cooking what seems to be a rabbit. With a sharp huff, I fall to my knees, exhausted and sore, near the fire and take some time to catch my breath.

Every breath I take makes my muscles cringe, but after a while, I clamp my teeth together and drag myself over to the fire. Aidan silently offers me a rabbit's leg and I chomp it down, determined not to complain and be the spoiled princess.

"It's okay to express your frustration, Elsa. If you don't, it will only build up inside you and you will never gain control over it," says Aidan as he places strips of meat in between the hot stones around the fire to cook them.

I shake my head stubbornly. "Queens don't complain. They find a way to deal with their problems without expressing that they were in fact problems."

Aidan smiles kindly. "But your powers are not a problem, Elsa. They are a gift. Some call it a curse, thus the term 'Curselings', but you should always view your powers as a gift."

I sit up, grind my teeth a little as my muscles surely complain, and take another bite from the rabbit leg. "Surely you didn't think your powers were a gift in the beginning?"

Loss and agony flash across his face until he hides them once again behind a mask of calm.

After a long silence, Aidan says: "You're right. I didn't think it a gift or a blessing." He lays himself down and rests his hands behind his head, avoiding my gaze. "I thought it a sadistic way to bring an end to my family."

"What happened?" I ask in a small voice, not sure if I am willing to find out.

"It was a long time ago," Aidan dodges around my question, but I persevere.

"Aidan, whatever happened to you can happen to me. Please."

"Ice is not as terrible as fire. What happened to me will not happen to you."

"Are you seriously comparing one destructive thing to another? Both can be terrible and both can bring destruction. What happened to you can surely happen to me," I reply stubbornly.

"Fine!" He complies with a slight break in his voice. "You stubborn woman.."

I glare a little at his remark, but remain silent. After a long while Aidan stops staring into the fire and softly starts to talk.

"As you know the Ashen Mountains are part of the Eastern Kingdoms. The village that I originate from was a tiny one, set near the roots of the biggest Mountain. Ironically, it was actually called Hamlet.." He allows himself a slight chuckle, yet it does not fully reach his eyes.

"My father and mother where simple, but proud. Most people from the Ashen area are proud, but they were proud of their simplistic way of living. They were farmers, and abided by selling crops in the village. They were perfectly fine until I came along."

Aidan still refuses to look at me and I feel the need to comfort him. To tell him that it is not necessary for me to know his obviously painful past. But I know that I have to know the dangers that he experienced, if I am to become stronger in my own control. I also fear the any physical closeness might throw him off and interrupt his story.

"I was their first child, and their world sort of crumbled when I started to set things on fire before I could even walk. I once set fire to the roof, but father was close enough to hide the whole matter from the neighbours. 'God save us from the day the neighbours find out' my mother used to say." Aidan's words take on a bitter, sharp edge.

"In the coming years I worked hard to keep my powers under control. I sought solitude, just like you did," he finally meets my gaze, and there is understanding in his golden eyes.

"It was wrong, though, to seek solitude. From my loneliness, my powers got out of control. If you don't feed an undying fire, it will find things to feed on itself. No matter how hard I tried, fire sprouted from my hands with the simplest of emotions. My father and mother were about to send me away because I was so out of control, until my sister was born."

A small smile appears on Aidan's face, one of long lost adoration. "She was the cutest little thing. She had the whole big eyes thing going on that some babies have. She had the same golden eyes as I had, which greatly worried my parents. They were both brown-eyed, so they feared that perhaps my sister was Cursed as well. Their worries were unnecessary.. Ayla was the sweetest, most innocent thing I have ever known."

"Why are you using past tense?" I ask hesitantly, fearing that I already know the answer.

"Do not fret. She still lives, last time I checked.." Aidan admits with a thin smile. "Yet she is not living the life I would have wanted for her.."

He stares another long moment into the flames, lost in thought, or so I believe.

"It was right after her fifth birthday that things went all wrong. My parents had reluctantly allowed me to stay since I gained more control the moment my sister was born, but they were still on edge. There was a carnival in town. I wanted to take Ayla to the carnival for her birthday, but my parents did not trust me with her alone. They were deadly afraid that I would do something to their only normal child."

Aidan snickers shortly. "They were right of course. I was dangerous, way too dangerous to be allowed alone with her, yet my sister was entranced with the idea of the carnival, and she begged my parents to allow it. They themselves were occupied with the farm, and reluctantly they complied with her request."

"Now, the night before we were supposed to go, I stayed up late with Ayla.. She knew about my power to conjure fire.. little kids have a knack of finding out things you don't want them to know. She asked me if I could juggle fire like the jugglers in the carnival, or spew like the fire breather. She was so entranced, so excited.." Aidan suddenly shakes his head, grabbing it with both his hands.

"I just conjured a little flame in the palm of my hand.. She.. she came too close.. I got scared that she would burn herself." Aidan's story now comes reluctantly, in pieces and his voice sounds agonized. My fingers itch to sit near him and wrap my arms around him.

"I was so stupid. I tried to get the flame away from her, but it blazed up, fed by my fear, and the house caught fire.. Before I knew it, the entire roof was on fire, and everything was falling apart around us. Ayla was crying. She was trying to crawl away from me." There is now disgust in his voice, disgust, I realize, direct primarily at himself.

"The roof was collapsing, and I had to get her out, so I simply grabbed her and carried her out. She was thrashing and screaming in my arms, but I just held on to her to get her out. Little did I know that I was severely injuring her.."

Aidan is shivering and the fire in the centre of our camping spot flickers, blazing up and down with each breath he takes.

"Aidan.." I mutter silently, swiftly stepping over to him and grabbing both his hands in my own. He immediately pulls them away though, and gazes at me with fear and guilt.

"Aidan, it's okay.. you were trying to help her.."

"It's not okay, Elsa! I sat her down when we finally got outside and went back for my parents, but at that moment the roof collapsed. There was no way of saving them. And when I turned to Ayla.. her face.."

He buries his face in his hands, shocking and shaking at the intensity of the memories. I try to shush him, to tell him that he doesn't have to continue, but he once again shakes off my arms.

"I then noticed that there was blood on my hand.. I had tried to cover her face from the fire with it.. but that side of her face.. It was raw and bloody. How her flesh must have sizzled.." Aidan growls at himself, his eyes wild with pain and guilt. He raises himself up and starts pacing.

"She had been so sweet.. But then all she could do was cry in pain and gaze at me with deathly fear.. It paralyzed me.."

With a frustrated grunt I grab his arm and pull him back to the ground, making him sit next to me near the fire. "Aidan.. You were, what? Ten years old? It was an accident."

"And I could have prevented it if I had been more cautious!" Aidan growls back at me. He takes a long moment to close his eyes and regain a regular breathing pattern. When he opens his eyes there is a controlled calmness there.

"This is why you I beg you to reconsider, Elsa. When under too much pressure, you could lose control, forever. I've seen people burn themselves to a crisp or let themselves be swallowed by earth or water because they thought they could push themselves. This is why you trying to learn control in a mere two weeks is a death wish," Aidan eyes me with strong urgency.

"Please, will you not reconsider?"

I shake my head. "I have made up my mind, Aidan."

Aidan shakes his head at me and gazes at me with a dooming look, as if my fate is already sealed.

"What happened after..?" I ask softly.

Aidan gazes at me regretfully. "I ran. I ran away as far as I could. And I vowed that I would never hurt anyone ever again. So I practiced day and night, for many years, and slowly control became a second nature. I never dared return to the village of Hamlet, for fear of my sister recognizing me. There was much talk, however, about Curselings throughout the lands, and I figured that perhaps I could save some of those Curselings of a fate that befell me."

He gently grasps my hands. "When I heard about Arendelle being covered with snow and ice, I figured someone had lost control, so I came as fast as I could."

"You should not have come," I reply sadly. "There is nothing but ice on our way."

"I wouldn't have missed it.." Aidan mutters softly and absent-mindedly plays with the tip of my braid. He raises his gaze to meet mine, and if ever there was a moment of connection, that was it.

Alas, it was rudely interrupted by a large crackle from the fire, sending a great deal of sparks into the night sky. Suddenly I was stumbling to the other side, and Aidan was mumbling excuses and we were just one big awkward mess. Aidan insisted on getting more firewood, while there was still a reasonable pile of wood at the edge of our little camp.

He soon disappears into the darkness, his cloak swivelling and his steps hasty. I groan slightly and shake my head. I feel mentally exhausted, and it doesn't help that I am no longer distracted from the aching pain in my muscles.

I think about Aidan's sister, Ayla, and about Anna. We both hurt our younger sisters, marking them forever, and breaking our souls in the process. Ayla is somewhere in the village of Hamlet, hiding her burnt side of her face from all, while Anna is at the Southern Isles, asserting her dominance over whoever she wishes.

I sigh, and though I now know Aidan's story, for some reason it's making me feel more alone than ever.

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><p><em>YAY MOre angsty conversation yay. Please let me know if I should tweak some things here and there. (Though Aidan is already growing quite dear to my little heart)<em>


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Family reunion

_A.N. Sorry for the long wait. Again. This is sort of an inbetween chapter leading up to the big confrontation, but I hope you guys still enjoy it 3_

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><p>Aidan and I continue our traveling and training for another two days. The combination of both the journey on foot and the hours of practicing my magic against Aidan's make my muscles churn in pain whenever I move. Bruises cover my knees from whenever I fell down and gave in to fatigue, and scratches from shrubs and thorns mark my arms from whenever we worked our way through thick undergrowth.<p>

And the most frustrating thing is that Aidan remains quiet and controlled. He doesn't curse, he doesn't complain, he voices nothing of what goes on in his head.

It's infuriating. While I strife for the same calmness and control, he makes it seem so easy. I want to yell at him and scream and voice my frustrations in some way. But I cannot, since he remains so still and calm, so I simply grit my teeth and push on.

At the end of our fourth day of travelling, I sit down with a heavy sigh when Aidan finally announces that its time to rest for the night.

"What, is our little ice queen a little tired?" he jokes, while I groan softly. "Want me to rub your feet? Give you a nice massage?"

"Shut up, Aidan. Do you think I like being so out of my element?" I snap back.

Aidan chuckles. "I suppose not. Yet it's amusing to see royalty trudging through mud and bushes. It's not something you see every day."

I grumble softly as I take to my sore feet again.

"Where are you going?" Aidan asks, slightly surprised to see me on my feet again.

"I am going to find a nice shrub, and I am going to pee royally on it!" I snicker slightly. "You can come along if you want. I bet it's not every day that you see a royal peeing on a shrub," I add as taunt.

My taunt has immediate effect as Aidan's surprised look is priceless. He starts muttering and awkwardly scratches behind his head while declining my offer. I chuckle and leave the clearing that we've settled in, and take my time to remember the way back to it.

I listen closely for any noise. Not that I expect Aidan to follow me and spy on me. He's got that honour thing going on that prevents him from sneaky stuff like that. Yet I cannot shake the feeling that there is more to the darkness of the forest than a royal looking for a shrub.

A loud crack overhead makes me jump a little, but immediately take on the stance that Aidan has drilled into my brain the past few days.

I only find myself in that stance for a few seconds, before someone, or something, tackles me from behind. A hand quickly locks over my lips before I can let out a scream, and a strong body pins me to the forest floor.

I immediately begin to struggle, digging my nails into my assailants body and getting ready to freeze him or her to the bone. My attacker growls softly in pain as my nails find skin, then proceeds to whisper to me with a hiss.

"Elsa! Stop that! It's me! It's me!" Aidan hisses into my ear, releasing his hand from over my body.

"Aidan?! What the hell are you doing?!" I hiss back.

"There's someone out there." He whispers again, flinching as he touches his neck where I dug my nails into his flesh. To my content I can see that I drew blood. Serves him right. "Someone not very skilled in being silent was sneaking around our camp, before leaving in your direction. So excuse me for coming after you," he growls softly.

"Well, you could have been a little more subtle and simply alerted me instead of tackling me!" I snap back.

"Be silent, woman! We don't know who we are dealing with here!" He snaps back just as firmly.

I am about to retaliate with more than just words, when a rustling comes nearer and nearer. Aidan protectively wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me deeper into the shadows of the brush. I give him my foulest glare, but do not move in fear of discovery.

The rustling is accompanied with hushed voices.

"… was a camp back there! Even a smouldering fire! They have to be near," a kind woman's voice sounds.

"And since when are you looking out to meet complete strangers? Are you over the whole 'men with pointy teeth' thing, eh? Ruffians? Thugs?" A charismatic male voice answers.

"I never believed that for a second, Eugene! Don't give me that look!"

"What, you don't like my smoulder?!"

"I broke it once, and I will break it again!" The woman snickers and laughs. Both voices seem to move slightly left of our position.

Aidan murmurs for me to stay put and almost reluctantly unwraps his arm from around my waist. I am about to retort that I am not staying behind, before putting up a meek expression and nodding. Aidan eyes me suspiciously in the darkness, but then slowly moves from our hiding place.

I watch Aidan circle silently through the trees left of the voices, and when he is out of sight, I try to match his noiseless step and start to circle around to the right.

Under the cover of darkness both Aidan and I remain undetected by the man and woman as they continue to move North.

"We should probably make camp somewhere," the female voice suggests.

"Already? I mean, sure, I wouldn't be able to resist spooning with me either," the male voice answers.

"Hey, you are the one that always wants to be the small spoon, so don't you suggest that I'm the only one-"

The female voice cuts off her words with a soft shriek, and simultaneously the forest lights up and is bathed in an orange glow. With a soft curse, I jump up from my crouch and sprint towards the source of the glow.

The scene before me is slightly mind boggling. Aidan stands in the middle of a small clearing with his right arm tightly wrapped around a slim woman's neck. His other arm is extended in front of her, a ball of fire twinkling and lapping in the palm of his hand.

Across from them stands a man with brown hair swept back and a small goatee on his chin, stunned as he gazes at Aidan and the woman. His hand is resting on his belt, where, strangely, a pan dangles besides a dagger.

The most disturbing thing, however, in that scene, is Aidan's face. It stands cautiously, yet mercilessly as he gazes at the man and keeps the woman firmly in his grip. It's the face of a hunter ready to defend himself at all costs. I suppress a shiver and let my gaze move to the woman. She seems, vaguely familiar..

Her garb is fine, yet practical, and that short, spiky brown hair frames a pair of frightened, green eyes. Those green eyes look quite a bit like.. auntie's..

"Rapunzel?!" I step forward from the treeline, my eyes focussed on the woman that I perceive as my cousin. Those green eyes widen and blink a few times in confusion, then recognition. With a surge of energy, she tries to break Aidan's grip and escape his hold, but Aidan holds on to her tightly.

"Elsa?! What.. what are you doing here? Do you know him?" she gazes hesitantly at Aidan who's expression is now dominated by confusion as well.

"Aidan, release her!" I command, surprisingly firmly. Aidan loosens his grip a little, but not enough to release Rapunzel. He nearly releases her, when the man next to me pulls his dagger and sprints at Aidan.

"Not so fast!" Aidan growls and readjusts his grip on Rapunzel, bringing the fire in his palm closer to his face.

"Oi, tell your boyfriend here to let her go before he scorches her already so short hair!" the one named Eugene calls out, his dagger still raised cautiously in front of him.

"Hey! You said you liked my hair short!" Rapunzel retorts.

"Enough!" Aidan growls. "Who are you and why are you following us?"

"Release her, Aidan," I command calmly. "They are no threat."

"How can you be sure?" Aidan replies just as calmly, yet his voice is edged with suspicion.

"She's my cousin." I state simply with a slight snicker, and it immediately changes Aidan's expression. Sudden embarrassment and surprise wash over his face and the fire in his palm fades out. A soft gasp of surprise indicates that Rapunzel has been released from Aidan's grasp. After a few long seconds, Aidan once again lights the fire in his palm, once more illuminating the clearing in a soft, golden light.

Eugene has his arms locked around Rapunzel and is checking her over and over, while she insists that she is fine. After she has convinced him that she is indeed fine, he starts to glare at Aidan.

"My apologies," Aidan offers slightly hesitantly, and adds a slight bow, recognizing Rapunzel's royal status. "I was simply trying to keep Elsa safe."

"You don't protect me by holding every other woman hostage that comes in our near vicinity, Aidan! You can't just-" I burst out and Eugene immediately joins in.

"Yeah, what do you think you're doing?! That's no way to treat a lady!"

Aidan flushes a little, and lowers his eyes in slight embarrassment, but Rapunzel comes to his aid.

"Eugene, stop that. Aidan here was just being cautious, and I wasn't hurt, so no harm done. Also, Elsa, don't be so hard on your companion here. Obviously he has the best intentions to protect you. You should applaud his caution, not try to correct it," Rapunzel speaks happily.

I give her a small nod after a moment of contemplation, then open my arms to welcome her. She locks her arms around me almost giddily.

"It's so good to see you again, Rapunzel. Our last meeting ended a bit.. icy, did it not?"

Rapunzel half breaks our hug to gaze at me with worried eyes. "I'm so sorry for what happened during the coronation, Elsa. We were caught in the throng of people when you ran. I felt so helpless.."

"It is behind us, dear cousin. I was afraid and uncertain. Fleeing seemed the best option at that point," I mutter softly.

"Please, let me introduce Eugene, my husband. He was a bit too occupied with the jewels on display to be introduced earlier," Rapunzel grasps my hand and leads me towards her companion, who makes an deep bow.

"Your Majesty, it is an honour. I swear I did not steal your jewels. Those days are far behind me, but I still know how to appreciate true beauty." Eugene's eyes flicker at Rapunzel as he says 'true beauty' and flashes a wide smile.

"It is a pleasure, Eugene. My cousin is lucky to have you besides her," I reply politely, feeling a slight pang of jealousy at his devoted gaze when it fell on Rapunzel.

Apparently I did not do much of a job of disguising that pang of jealousy, because Eugene takes a step closer and whispers softly: "Oh, but you are lucky too, your Majesty. You have only yet to realise it."

His words invoke an immediate blush on my cheeks as I force myself not to gaze back at Aidan, who has kept himself on the background.

"Please, let me introduce to you Aidan of the Ashen Mountains. He's helping me.. control my powers."

"Ah yes, since he's got the whole fire thing going on, I suppose," Eugene interjects.

Aidan bows again. "Once more my apologies. I would have never been so hasty had I known your relation to my Queen."

"Elsa, where is your sister? The last thing we heard before we left Arendelle was that she came after you.." Rapunzel says.

"Sit yourself down, for that is a long story," I manage to say with a deep sigh. I throw a glance at Aidan, who is about to retreat into the tree-line. "Aidan? Where are you going?"

"To fetch some firewood, your Majesty. It seems we shall reside here for a little while."

"You could stay. Help me tell the story," I try. "Besides, you do not need firewood for a fire," I add, remembering the fire he had created before, without needing fuel.

"I wouldn't dare impose myself on you and your family, your Majesty." And without another word, Aidan turns around and disappears into the forest.

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><p><em>Review and all that jazz, please!<em>


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